Vol. 399 No. 3
38 Mr. J. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Social Welfare whether he accepts that it makes good social policy and economic sense to substantially broaden the number of people who can qualify for the carer's allowance, so that more of our elderly people can be cared for at home rather than in institutions.
In drawing up proposals for the new carer's allowance which I am introducing later this year, I was anxious that the scope of the new allowance would be considerably broader than that of the prescribed relatives allowance which it will replace. In doing so, I was conscious of the part that a scheme of this nature can play in assisting the elderly and the incapacitated to remain in their own homes. I was also very conscious of the role of the carers and the debt that the community owes to them for the dedication which they show in looking after those in their care. I expect around 6,000 additional carers will qualify for payments under the scheme compared with around 1,700 people who benefit under the existing prescribed relatives allowance.
I will consider the merits of further broadening the scheme in the context of future budgets.
